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Lower back stiffness keeps Young out of lineup

Lower back stiffness keeps Young out of lineup

BOSTON -- Infielder Michael Young was out of the Rangers' lineup on Wednesday night with some stiffness in his lower back, but the club expects him back in the lineup in a day or two.

"I've had this happen three or four times in my career, and after a day or two, everything is fine," Young said. "It's one of those things [where] a joint gets locked up in my back, and after the second day, it feels good. The training staff said, 'Let's give it a day to let it calm down and we'll be good to go.' This is my 12th year, [so] it's probably a wise move to start taking the advice of the training staff."

Young said he felt his back lock up on him in his first at-bat during Tuesday's 18-3 victory over the Red Sox. He struck out in that at-bat in the second inning and stayed in the game for three more at-bats.

Young grounded out, struck out and then hit a home run in the sixth inning. It was his second of the year.

"We were trying to talk him out of that at-bat, but he said he wanted to try it one more time," manager Ron Washington said. "He got the perfect pitch, the one pitch he could do something with. When he came back, we said that was it."

Brandon Snyder started at first base Wednesday while Mitch Moreland was at designated hitter. It was Moreland's first game since Friday in Minnesota after missing time because of an abscessed tooth. But Snyder got the start at first base, his second of the season.

"He's young," Washington said. "I don't feel like he could sit around and stay warm and have good at-bats, so I decided to put him on the field."